Receptacle closure



' March 7, 1950 LE ROY E. GOULD RECEPTACLE CLOSURE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March ;4, 1947 I Invento;

Le Roy E. Gould By W E M Attorneys March 1950 LE ROY E. GOULD 2,499,745

, RECEPTACLE CLOSURE Filed March 14, 1947 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Inventor Le Roy E. Gould WWW ?atentecl Mar. 7, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE RECEPTACLE CLOSURE Le Roy E. Gould, St. Paul, Minn. Application March 14, 1947, Serial No. 734,701

6 Claims.

This invention relates to receptacle closures, and more particularly to an improved receptacle cover and locking means therefor.

In certain types of receptacles, such as those used for cooking therein eggs devested of their shells, it is essential that the removable covers for such receptacles tightly seal the same, and it is also desirable that the covers be readily and quickly removable and replaceable for practical use. When the receptacle must be opened when in a hot or cold condition, steps must be taken to prevent injury or discomfort to the hands while handling the receptacle to release and remove its cover.

The present invention is directed to taking care of this problem by providing a receptacle closure in which an upper part of a cover is adapted to be manually turned in one direction relative to a lower part thereof to secure the cover in closing position and in the opposite direction to release the cover, in which a spring is arranged to be placed under compression when the upper part is so turned in the one direction, and in which a manually releasable catch is provided to automatically lock the upper part against turning in the opposite direction after being so turned in the one direction. Thus, upon release of the catch, the spring will automatically turn the upper part in the opposite direction to quickly release the cover for convenient removal without danger of causing injury or material discomfort to the hands of the user due to gripping the receptacle.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved closure of the above kind which is comparatively simple in construction, easy to use, and efficient in operation.

More specific objects and features of the invention will become apparent from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is an elevational view of an egg cup and cooker embodying a receptacle closure con-'- structed in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 2 is a top plan view thereof;

Figure 3 is an enlarged vertical section taken on line 33 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a top plan View of the lower part of the cover forming part of the present closure;

Figure 5 is a bottom plan view of the upper part of said cover;

Figure 6 is an enlarged fragmentary section taken on line 6-6 of Figure 2;

Figure 10 is an enlarged perspective View of one 1 of the locking bolts.

Referring in detail to the drawings, I have, 11

lustrated, by way of example, an egg cup and cooker embodying a closure constructed in accordance with the present invention, said egg cup and cooker being of the type generally disclosed in the U. s. patent to w. R. Hill No.

499,426 of June 13, 1893. As shown, the device includes an egg receptacle or cup 5 having legs 6 or the like for supporting the same in an upright position.

In accordance with the receptacle end which gasket 8 disposed and suitably held thereon. The mouth portion of the receptacle is also formed with an internal annular groove 9 above the shoulder 1.

A cover is provided for the receptacle 5, which cover includes a lower part it seated on the shoulder I, or its gasket 8 and having its upper side even with the top of groove 9. The cover further includes an upper part H which is fitted in the mouth portion of receptacle 5 upon the lower part Iii. A screw l2 freely passes throu h a central opening 13 of the lower part it and has a threaded upper end portion M which. is tightly screwed into a threaded socket E5 of the upper part i I so as to connect the latter to the lower part ill for rotation relative to said lower part. A pair of diametrically opposed radial grooves i6 are formed in the upper surface of the lower part I!) so as to extend to the edge of the latter, and a locking bolt I! is slidable radially of the part ID in each groove 16 thereof and for projection into and retraction from the internal groove 9 of receptacle 5. The upper part II is formed. in

its underside with a pair of elongated eccentric or cam grooves 3 which receive pins l9 that are carried by and project upwardly from the inner end portions of the bolts H. The arrangement is such that when the upper part I l is rotated in a clockwise direction as viewed in Figure 2, the bolts I! will be retracted from the groove 9 so as to release the cover and permit its removal from receptacle 5. The. arrangement is also such that when the upper part i l is rotated in an present invention, the 5 has a mouth portion at. its-upper;- is formed with an internal .annular: cover supporting shoulder I having a sealing anti-clockwise direction as viewed in Figure 2, the bolts I! will be projected into the groove 9 for locking the cover in closing position. As shown more clearly in Figure 10, the outer ends of the bolts I! are beveled as at so as to have a camming action for tightly forcing the lower part In down upon the gasket 8 when the bolts I! are projected, thereby effectivel sealing the receptacle. The pins l9 also preferably project downwardly from the bolts l1 into elongated radial grooves 2| formed in the lower part it) within the inner end portions of the grooves I 6.

Formed in the upper side of the lower part ID is an arcuate groove 22, and a groove 23 is formed in the underside of the upper part I I.

As shown in Figure 8, the grooves 22 and 23 are arranged in overlapping relation so that adjacent end walls thereof form spaced shoulders 24 and 25. A helical compression spring 26 is disposed within the overlapped portions of the grooves 22 and 23 with its opposite ends respectively engaging the shoulders 24 and 25. The arrangement is such that when the upper part II is rotated in a counterclockwise direction as viewed in Figure 2 so as to project the bolts I1, the shoulders 24 and 25 are moved toward each other so as to place the spring 26 under compression. Accordingly, when the upper part I l is released, the compressed spring 26 will automatically rotate the upper part II in a clockwise direction as viewed in Figure 2 so as to cause retraction of the bolts I! and release of the cover for free removal. It is pointed out that the frictional resistance to rotation of the lower part it! offered by engagement of the latter with the gasket 8 is sufficient to overcome the strength of the spring 26 so that the latter will not turn the lower part l0 and will only turn the upper part I! of the cover.

The lower part It) also has a further shallow groove 2'! within one end of which is secured one end of a leaf spring catch 28 that is normally tensioned to spring upwardly out of said groove 2! although being manually depressible into the latter. The upper part II has a further arcuate groove that includes a deep end portion 29 and a shallower end portion 30. This groove 29, 36 is so arranged that when the upper part II is turned to a position wherein the bolts H are fully projected, the shallow portion 36 will pass the free end of catch 28, thereby permitting the latter to spring upwardly into the deeper groove portion 29 and behind the shoulder 3! formed at the juncture of the portions 29 and 30. When this occurs, the catch 28 efiectively holds the upper part II against clockwise rotation under the influence of spring 26, thereby securing the cover in locked condition with the bolts I'I projected and the spring 26 under compression. Obviously, therefore, if the catch 28 is depressed to disengage the latter from behind the shoulder 3|, the spring 26 will quickly rotate the part II in a clockwise direction so as to retract the bolts I! and thereby release the cover. To facilitate depression of the free end portion of catch 28, a pin 32 is provided which slidably extends through a vertical opening 33 provided in the upper part H at the end of the deeper groove portion 29 which is adjacent the shallower portion 30. The lower end of pin 32 has a head 34 which rests upon the free end of catch 28, and. the upper end of pin 32 projects above the top of part H. Thus, by the use of a finger, pin 32 ma be depressed so as to depress the free end portion of catch 28 and thereby disengage the latter from similar arcuate the shoulder 3| so that spring 26 may quickly turn the upper part II of the cover in a clockwise direction for causing retraction of bolts I1 and thereby releasing the cover.

The upper part I l of the cover is provided with a diametric rib 35 on its upper side, and this rib may be employed as a handle for use in rotating the part II when projecting the bolts l1 and compressing spring 26. Intermediate its ends, rib 35 may be formed with a slot or opening 36 to receive a suitable tool for use in removing the cover after the latter is released and while the latter is in a hot condition. This slot or opening may be suitable for the introduction of the blade of a table knife or an end of a fork.

From the foregoing description, it is believed that the construction, operation and advantages of the present invention will be readily understood and appreciated by those skilled in the art. Modifications and changes in details of construction are contemplated, such as fall within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What I claim is:

1. In combination with a receptacle having a mouth portion at its upper end formed with an internal annular cover supporting shoulder and an internal annular groove above said shoulder, a cover for the receptacle including a lower part fitted within said mouth portion and seated on said shoulder with its upper side below the upper edge of the receptacle, said cover further including an upper part fitted in said mouth portion upon said lower part and connected to the latter for rotation relative to the same, locking bolts carried by and slidable radially of said lower part for projection into and retraction from said groove to respectively secure the cover in place and to release the same for removal, and means operatively connecting said locking bolts to said upper part so that partial rotation of the latter in one direction will cause projection of said bolts and partial rotation of the same in the opposite direction will cause retraction of said bolts.

2. In combination with a receptacle having a mouth portion at its upper end formed with an internal annular cover supporting shoulder and an internal annular groove above said shoulder, a cover for the receptacle including a lower part fitted within said mouth portion and seated on said shoulder with its upper side below the upper edge of the receptacle, said cover further including an upper part fitted in said mouth portion upon said lower part and connected to the latter for rotation relative to the same, locking bolts carried by and slidable radially of said lower part for projection into and retraction from said groove to respectively secure the cover in place and to release the same for removal, means operatively connecting said locking bolts to said upper part so that partial rotation of the latter in one direction will cause projection of said bolts and partial rotation of the same in the opposite direction will cause retraction of said bolts, a spring arranged between and co-acting with said parts for being placed under compression when the upper part is rotated in the one direction, and means including a manually releasable catch for automatically locking said upper part against rotation in the opposite direction with the bolts projected and the spring under compression, said spring acting to rotate the upper part in said other direction to retract the bolts upon release of said catch.

3. The construction defined in claim 2, wherein the means for operatively connecting the bolts to said upper part includes cam grooves in the underside of saidupper part and pins carried by said bolts and projecting upwardly into said cam grooves.

4. The construction defined in claim 2, wherein said upper and lower parts have overlapping grooves in the adjacent sides thereof, and wherein said spring is arranged in the overlapping portions of said grooves and abuts the adjacent and walls of the latter.

5. The construction defined in claim 2, wherein the upper part is provided with a groove forming a shoulder, said catch comprising a spring tensioned to automatically engage behind said shoulder when the upper part of the cover is rotated sufiiciently to project the bolts.

6. The construction defined in claim 2, wherein the upper part is provided with a groove forming a shoulder, said catch comprising a spring tensioned to automatically engage behind said shoulder when the upper part of the cover is rotated sufficiently to project the bolts, and a finger pin slidable through the upper part and operable for depressing said catch so as to disengage the latter from behind said shoulder and permit rotation of the upper cover part by said spring for releasing the locking bolts.

LE ROY E. GOULD.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,709,459 Callahan Apr. 16, 1929 1,907,528 Evans May 9, 1933 

